Homer lost money because... ...he had to buy something? ...he lost money on an investment? ...his money were stolen? ...he was the victim of fraud? ...something valuable he owned lost its value? ...a profitable deal he had made went fown the drain? ...he was fined? ...he was sued?

Homer lost money because... ...he had to buy something? ...he lost money on an investment? ...his money were stolen? ...he was the victim of fraud? ...something valuable he owned lost its value? ...a profitable deal he had made went fown the drain? ...he was fined? ...he was sued? No to all, somewhat of an FA

If it hadn't been for these sickensses, Homer would have made thousands of dollars? Yesish/Yope

Did the two people get the same sickness? No Relevant exactly what kind of sickness(es)? Yes to the second one, No to the first one Are they both H/A/M? Yes Is their gender relevant? Not really Their age? Not really

If only one of these people got sick, would Homer still have made the money? YesDid Homer take care for any of his sick friends? Yope to the second one, No to the firstDid Homer plan a joint enterprise with any of these two friends? No

The sickness that is relevant to work out: is it a medical sickness/disease? Thisa mental illness? an allergy or similar? a rare condition? a very common condition? And this (but I wouldn't call it a "condition")a syndrome?

Can we name his friends? Please do!

had he invented something that was supposed to prevent or cure a particular sickness? No

Did the sicknesses strike suddenly? Or gradually? Did they both get sick at the same time? Or did William get sick first? Oscar? If so, how much time between them?

Was Homer with William and Oscar when he learned of the sicknesses? Did he learn of them at all?

Does William and Oscar know each other? Relevant?

Did Homer realise that he had lost money the instant he learned that William and Oscar were sick? Or did some events follow that he couldn't necessarily foresee, that eventually led to his loss of money?

Did the sicknesses strike suddenly? This Or gradually? Did they both get sick at the same time? Or did William get sick first? Oscar? This If so, how much time between them? About a day

Was Homer with William and Oscar when he learned of the sicknesses? William yes, Oscar no Did he learn of them at all? Yes

Does William and Oscar know each other? Yes Relevant? Not really

Did Homer realise that he had lost money the instant he learned that William and Oscar were sick? No Or did some events follow that he couldn't necessarily foresee, that eventually led to his loss of money? Yes

Was any of the man going to play baseball? No To watch baseball game? Yes Did playing baseball cause any of the infections? NoDid Homer have to be in a certain place on a certain time to get the money? Yesish

Homer lost out on gaining a lot of money because William and Oscar got sick. Part of what happened is this: Oscar was supposed to go with Homer to a baseball game, but he got sick, so William went with him instead.

Did the money have anything to do with the baseball game? With anything that happened at the stadium (aside from sickness)? With something that happened outside the stadium?

Was Oscar sicker than William? Was his sickness more apparent? Was there some reason why William could go while Oscar was too sick to go? Did William not know he was sick until he was already at the game?

Did Homer catch the illness from William?

Is Homer's mode of transportation relevant? Was Oscar supposed to drive him somewhere? To the ball park?

More generally, did the change in companion cause Homer's mode of transportation change? If so, was he expecting to go in a car? public transportation? taxi? human-powered transit (walk, bike, etc)? Did he actually go in a car? public transportation? taxi? human-powered transit?

Did the money have anything to do with the baseball game? Yes With anything that happened at the stadium (aside from sickness)? Yes With something that happened outside the stadium? No

Was Oscar sicker than William? Yes -- see next answer Was his sickness more apparent? Was there some reason why William could go while Oscar was too sick to go? Did William not know he was sick until he was already at the game? Yope -- he did not get sick until he was at the game

Did Homer catch the illness from William? No

Is Homer's mode of transportation relevant? No Was Oscar supposed to drive him somewhere? To the ball park?

More generally, did the change in companion cause Homer's mode of transportation change? Irrel If so, was he expecting to go in a car? public transportation? taxi? human-powered transit (walk, bike, etc)? Did he actually go in a car? public transportation? taxi? human-powered transit?

is there a prize for catching the ball? No or can you keep it and sell it? Yes

Was it the ball from an important hit? Yes Like, a game winning homer during the World Series? Or a certain player breaking a record? This.

**********SPOILER**********

Homer (did you catch the hint from his name?) was going to go to a baseball game with his friend Oscar, but Oscar got sick the day before, so he went with his other friend William instead. At the game, William got sick and he and Homer had to leave. Later in the game, a player hit a record-breaking home run right to the seat Homer had been sitting in. If either of his friends had not gotten sick, Homer would have caught the ball and sold it for a large sum.

The title referred to the phrase "tape-measure home run," and Homer's name, as mentioned, was also a hint.